Defective Child Locks Prompt Ford and Lincoln Vehicle Recall

Automotive giant, Ford Motor Co., just announced a recall of 12,569 cars and SUVs due to the potential for the rear door child locks to fail.

The defect could allow children to unlock and open the vehicles’ back doors from the inside; parents are likely unaware that this issue could occur, noted USA Today.

The recall involves 2013 Ford Explorer, Taurus, and Lincoln MKS vehicles manufactured from November 29 through December 12, 2012, according to USA Today.

The potentially faulty parts were manufactured in Mexico and supplied to Ford Motor through Brose, NA, which is based in Michigan, according the filing Ford made with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), USA Today reported. It seems that opening and closing the doors can shift the mechanism from a locked to an unlocked position with no warning, according to Ford. This shift could “lead to personal injury to an unrestrained child,” the NHTSA indicated in its recall notice.

The locks are used in modern vehicles and involve fairly simple mechanisms that enable doors to remain locked from the vehicle’s interior. This means that doors may only be opened from the vehicle’s exterior, according to USA Today. The feature is meant to prevent children from opening the back doors while the car is in motion, or in other situations when opening the door could pose a danger.

Ford announced that the recall will be initiated on August 5th and that its dealers will replace the faulty locks at no cost to consumers.

Consumers may reach Ford to determine if their vehicles are involved in the recall by calling Ford, toll-free, at 1.866.436.7332 or by contacting a local Ford or Lincoln dealer who can access specific vehicle information from the Ford On-line Automotive Service Information System (OASIS) database, according to USA Today.

In other Ford news, we recently wrote that some vehicles manufactured by Ford Motor Co. between 2002 and 2010 are allegedly prone to sudden, unintended acceleration. It seems that these Ford models may lack a secondary fail-safe system that is meant to prevent crashes.

One class action lawsuit filed against the Ford Motor Company in March states that some Ford vehicles that were manufactured between 2002 and 2010 contain a defect that causes the vehicles to suddenly accelerate. This defect places drivers at risk for injury and damages.

The alleged defect stems from the automobiles’ electronic throttle system. The system connects the gas pedal to the throttle electronically as opposed to mechanically, the lawsuit alleges. The lawsuit also alleges that Ford was aware of this issue and had the means to correct the fault. Despite this, Ford failed to make the correction until 2010.

Even after Ford installed a fail-safe, the company allegedly failed to inform consumers about previous models that still have the defect.